Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some of the questions we’re beginning to get. We also have an About Us page coming soon.
How many Healers do you plan on Supporting to Start?
Our current business model indicates that we can support 30 Healers with 16 hours/week in the private meeting rooms, and full-time access to the Healers Lounge and to the rest of the Center. The Center will be designed with quiet and thoughtful conversations in mind. We envision the Center as having a vibe similar to a library, or museum: on the quiet side, serene, friendly and welcoming.
Will there by food or beverages available in the Center?
At the very least we will have a self-serve deli stocked with fresh juices and nourishing food. As far as cafes or other business, the best we can say right now is that we hope so. That question depends on location. None of PHC’s core uses need to be located in retail spaces, but most cafes or food places do. We are speaking with several local business owners who would like to be involved. If none of them want to locate initially it sounds like we could still easily partner with someone to offer a self-operated fridge cooler for fresh juices
Are your Membership Categories Set in Stone? What are your growth plans? What’s your schedule?
They are not. Feel free to propose alternatives to what we’ve presented in the “Center Membership” page – these sorts of conversations are helpful at this stage. We plan to keep this question in particular flexible until after we have secured the space.
What would it be like to be a Founding Member?
We’d love to find founding Members who want to be involved! We’re engaging folks early because we believe that people getting involved and working on projects together is one of the best ways to build community; it also help us remember how easy it is to make change when we work together. Having people at the table early-on will help us shape decisions about program structure, classes and workshops – we even plan to have some design charrettes early on, after securing the space.
When do you Plan to Open?
We plan to start our PR launch in January 2025, and once we do that we will begin seeing responses to our surveys (please fill one out if you can). We will hold a number of community events, design charettes, and stakeholder outreach resulting in an exciting group of founding members by May 2025. We’re looking at locations now, but because we’re doing this outreach in part to determine how large the project should be, we won’t finalize a location until June 2025. We hope to open by September 2025.
Can any Healer Member Host Classes sponsored & promoted by PHC?
We’d love to connect with founding Healer Members with the credentials to teach classes & workshops hosted by PHC. We can’t guarantee that as a condition of membership, but Healer Members will have the option of reserving Classrooms and Event spaces at a discounted rate.
Who the Heck are You Guys?
We’re Terry Brandt and Sara Garrett, a couple almost-lifelong Portlanders with backgrounds in nonprofits, philanthropy, startups, design and property development. We have an About Us page coming soon!
What will PHC’s hours be? Will all areas of the Center be Open the whole time?
We anticipate that PHC will be open from 6:00 am – 10:00 pm, 365 days/week. That might change, though. Right now the plan is for all areas of the Center to stay open those hours, including the Sauna-style facilities – but some of the therapy devices may have more limited hours. Tenants will have their own hours of operation.
Is PHC a Nonprofit?
No, PHC is a social profit business; that means we plan to make good returns for investors and also to provide affordable services – community benefit, helping others, and living with purpose is at the heart of all we do. These things don’t have to be mutually exclusive. We have extensive experience in the nonprofit sector, and the fact is that a large and relatively untested project like PHC could never get off the ground as a nonprofit or a public project.
Are PHC’s Programs open to the Public?
Almost all of them. Our current model includes Ala Carte’ packages and Day passes for the PHC Facilities. Members will receive priority access and discounted registration for Classes, Workshops, and Discussion Groups, but there may be spaces available after that. If any classes and workshops fill up quickly we plan to duplicate them in short order.